Just Win, Baby

Time for some impressions on a game I picked up today with a gift card.

Blitz: The League for Xbox is the first time in about four years I've actually had fun playing a football video game. Blasphemy among gamers, I know, as Madden is the best of the best. But I just haven't seen it from Madden recently. The last Madden game I played for more than a half hour was the 2002 offering for Gamecube, and even that was a far cry from the best of the best (for the record, Super Tecmo Bowl for the NES is the best pure football game ever, with Joe Montana Sports Talk Football for the Genesis a very close second).

I've only played two complete games in B:TL, so let me run down some of the things I've noticed so far.

Calling and running plays is quick, easy, and painless. Select a formation, scroll through the available plays, pick one, and get ready for the snap. Simple, intuitive controls on both sides of the ball = no broken plays because you accidentally called an audible. Did I mention there are no audibles? You pick a play and you run it. Done.

Custom teams that I can have fun creating without spending a month of Sunday's. Pick your location, team name, logo, and colors, then hire coaching staff (head coach, offensive and defensive coordinator) and one star player each on offense and defense, and you're in the game.

Football. Seems so simple, doesn't it? Too bad modern football games have become more like coaching simulators than fucking football games. I want to get my team on the field, throw the long ball, break some tackles, and bust some heads. Is that so hard?

Hard hits are so much more fun in this game than other football games. Lay down a particularly nasty slam on the ball carrier, and you'll get a nice cutaway shot of the guy's bones breaking or cartilage snapping. And since we're not dealing with the NFL here, your trainers can treat the injury, or "juice" the player up to get him back in the game. Sweet. Get the opposing team all riled up with a succession of dirty hits, and you'll spark a full on brawl, where you can cause some serious damage. It's like hockey without all the Canadians!

Like I said, I've only played two complete games, so these opinions are subject to change. But I'm having way too damn much fun laying the smackdown.

Oh, and I mentioned earlier about the best pure football game ever. What's the best arcade style football game ever? Mutant League Football for the Genesis. B:TL reminds me so much of Mutant League it makes me giddy.